Objective-To determine the pharmacokinetics of marbofloxacin after single IV and orally administered doses in blue and gold macaws. Animals-10 healthy blue and gold macaws. Procedures-In a crossover study, marbofloxacin (2.5 mg/kg) was administered orally (via crop gavage) to 5 birds and IV to 5 birds. Blood samples were obtained at 0, 0.5, 1, 3, 6, 12, 24, 48, 72, and 96 hours after marbofloxacin administration. After a 4-week washout period, the study was repeated, with the first 5 birds receiving the dose IV and the second 5 birds receiving the dose orally. Serum marbofloxacin concentrations were quantitated by use of a validated liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry assay. Results-After oral administration, mean +/- SD area under the curve was 7.94 +/- 2.08 microgram.h/mL, maximum plasma concentration was 1.08 +/- 0.316 microgram/mL, and bioavailability was 90.0 +/- 31%. After IV administration of marbofloxacin, the apparent volume of distribution was 1.3 +/- 0.32 L/kg, plasma clearance was 0.29 +/- 0.078 L/h/kg, area under the curve was 9.41 +/- 2.84 microgram.h/mL, and the harmonic mean terminal half-life was 4.3 hours. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Single IV and orally administered doses of marbofloxacin were well tolerated by blue and gold macaws. The orally administered dose was well absorbed. Administration of marbofloxacin at a dosage of 2.5 mg/kg, PO, every 24 hours may be appropriate to control bacterial infections susceptible to marbofloxacin in this species.

Objective-To evaluate various sampling strategies for potential use in measuring prevalence of antimicrobial susceptibility in cattle. Sample Population-500 isolates of non-type-specific Escherichia coli (NTSEC) isolated from the feces of 50 cows from 2 dairy farms (25 cows/farm and 10 isolates/cow). Procedures-Diameters of inhibition zones for 12 antimicrobials were analyzed to estimate variation among isolates, cows, and farms and then used to determine sampling distributions for a stochastic simulation model to evaluate 4 sampling strategies. These theoretic sampling strategies used a total of 100 isolates in 4 allocations (1 isolate from 100 cows, 2 isolates from 50 cows, 3 isolates from 33 cows, or 4 isolates from 25 cows). Results-Analysis of variance composition revealed that 74.2% of variation was attributable to isolates, 18.5% to cows, and 7.3% to farms. Analysis of results of simulations suggested that when most of the variance was attributable to differences among isolates within a cow, culturing 1 isolate from each of 100 cows underestimated overall prevalence, compared with results for culturing more isolates per cow from fewer cows. When variance was not primarily attributable to differences among isolates, all 4 sampling strategies yielded similar results. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-It is not always possible to predict the hierarchical level at which clustering will have its greatest impact on observed susceptibility distributions. Results suggested that sampling strategies that use testing of 3 or 4 isolates/cow from a representative sample of all animals better characterize herd prevalence of antimicrobial resistance when impacted by clustering.

Objective-To determine the susceptibility of strains of Pasteurella multocida subsp multocida isolated from lung specimens of pigs with pneumonia to 20 antimicrobials and to evaluate the emergence of resistance to those antimicrobials in Spain during the past 2 decades. Sample Population-63 isolates recovered from 1987 to 1988 and 132 isolates recovered from 2003 to 2004. Procedure-A broth microdilution method was used to determine minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) range and values for MIC50 and MIC90. Resistance of a strain to an antimicrobial agent was determined by use of the breakpoint value when available. Results-Isolates were generally susceptible to penicillin, ampicillin, ceftiofur, gentamicin, apramycin, neomycin, spectinomycin, chlortetracycline, erythromycin, tilmicosin, enrofloxacin, and florfenicol, and most isolates were resistant to clindamycin, tylosin tartrate, and tiamulin regardless of the time period. A substantial increase in resistance to sulfachlorpiridazine, sulfadimethoxine, sulfathiazole, and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole was observed, and a minor increase in resistance to oxytetracycline was also detected. Several multiresistance patterns were observed, most frequently among isolates recovered in the 2003 to 2004 interval. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Ceftiofur, florfenicol, and enrofloxacin are recommended for treatment of infections caused by P multocida subsp multocida in Spain. Increased frequency of resistance to oxytetracycline and sulfonamide drugs may be a contraindication for their use.

Objective-To study the pharmacokinetics of difloxacin (5 mg/kg) following IV, IM, and intragastric (IG) administration to healthy horses. Animals-6 healthy mature horses. Procedures-A crossover study design with 3 phases was used (15-day washout periods between treatments). An injectable formulation of difloxacin (5%) was administered IV and IM in single doses (5 mg/kg); for IG administration, an oral solution was prepared and administered via nasogastric tube. Blood samples were collected before and at intervals after each administration. A high-performance liquid chromatography assay with fluorescence detection was used to determine plasma difloxacin concentrations. Pharmacokinetic parameters of difloxacin were analyzed. Plasma creatine kinase activity was monitored to assess tissue damage. Results-Difloxacin plasma concentration versus time data after IV administration were best described by a 2-compartment open model. The disposition of difloxacin following IM or IG administration was best described by a 1-compartment model. Mean half-life for difloxacin administered IV, IM, and IG was 2.66, 5.72, and 10.75 hours, respectively. Clearance after IV administration was 0.28 L/kg.h. After IM administration, the absolute mean +/- SD bioavailability was 95.81 +/- 3.11% and maximum plasma concentration (C(max)) was 1.48 +/- 0.12 mg/L. After IG administration, the absolute bioavailability was 68.62 +/- 10.60% and C(max) was 0.732 +/- 0.05 mg/L. At 12 hours after IM administration, plasma creatine kinase activity had increased 7-fold, compared with the preinjection value. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Data suggest that difloxacin is likely to be effective for treating susceptible bacterial infections in horses.